What Just Happened
by crowes
Summary: When Dr John Smith is surrounded by menacing leather-people in the basement of Royal Hope Hospital, there is only going to be one person that takes his hand and tells him to run.
1. Rose

**A/N: Hello, everyone! This is my first go at a Doctor Who fic, and it was a fun one. I've nothing much to say other than if I get anything wrong, please don't hesitate to correct me. And thanks for reading!**

_**PS: Just to make things extra clear, despite, I'm sure, what many of you were thinking, I do NOT own Doctor Who.**_

"Run," the woman said.

She had appeared out of nowhere in the basement of Royal Hope. John had no time to question her as she took his hand and he did exactly as she ordered. He bolted past the leather-people that had cornered him minutes ago.

"What were those things?!" His eyes went wide and his voice frantic.

"They're called slabs. Just your basic slave race from another world." Her voice betrayed her as a Londoner and her cheerful, casual tone as mad.

John ignored her odd response as they ran into the elevator. The woman pressed a button a few times and the doors closed but not before one of the leather-persons managed to stick its arm through.

To his horror, the woman tugged on the arm until it popped clean off. "Why the hell did you do that," he cried. "His arm..." Despite his years in the medical field, John started to feel ill. What had he done to deserve this? _Honestly_. Well, besides stuffing Stoker's lab coat pockets with marmalade. But then, that didn't count. The man was _unbearable_.

She raised her eyebrows. "For a doctor, you sure are thick. Look," she took her fist and knocked against the side of it. "Solid leather, through and through." She smiled comfortingly at his nervousness. "Don't worry. Soon you'll be home safe and sound, watching telly and eating chips. Though I might join you for that second part if you don't mind. I do like a good chip... But then that's after I deal with the scary monsters."

John got the sneaking suspicion she was mocking him.

He scowled. "That's not exactly fair of you, putting it that way. How do you expect me to react? Besides, it's not like I was planning on running into these, these- slabs, as you call them. I was just looking for a missing patient."

"Did this patient happen to be an older lady?"

"Er-yeah..."

"Short, with blonde hair?"

"Yep."

"She come down here often?"

"Well yeah, actually. Poor old Mrs Finnegan- all the other doctors say she has a few loose ends. She's been in and out of here for ages. Always wandering off."

"Ah," said the woman. "Mrs Finnegan is dead." With that she stepped out of the open doors of the elevator and onto the ground floor.

"Dead? What do you mean dead?"

"I mean dead. Deceased, lifeless, passed away, stiff!" John felt his face go white, and the woman's eyes softened.

His eyes narrowed. "How?"

"What?" They made their way into the lobby now.

"How'd she die?"

"You wouldn't believe me if I told you."

"Try me."

"Alright then." She paused right before the entrance. "The shortened version is that your lovely Mrs. Finnegan was actually a shape-shifting alien murderer being hunted down by intergalactic police rhinos. I was able to locate her and turn her in before she used the MRI to sent out an electromagnetic pulse to destroy the entire planet. In effect, I saved all of you... again. We good, mate? Good. See ya later for those chips then. I still need to hunt down those slabs."

She shoved him out the door, and nearly went back inside before swinging it open again and looked him in the eye. This was the first good look he'd gotten of her, and he was surprised at just how normal, how young, she was. She hardly looked to be twenty, with unnaturally blonde hair, large brown eyes and an over-excessive use of mascara. Her lips were plump and seemed to be naturally turned upwards at the corners. Yet, there was a certain amount of sadness about her that was far older than her appearance.

"My name's Rose, by the way. And who're you?"

"Uh, I'm Doctor Smith- John Smith."

"Nice to meet you Doc-tah," Rose said, poking her tongue out between her teeth as she beamed at him. There was a crashing sound behind her, and she pulled something metallic out of the leather jacket that hung down by her knees. She pressed a button, and John heard shattering from inside. "Run for your life." This time she did shut the door, and when he tried to pull it open, he found that it was locked.

He walked away from the building, shaking his head in disbelief and gripping onto the leather arm that he didn't realize Rose had given him. _What just happened?_

**To Be Continued...**


	2. Intermission

**A/N: Hello all! Thanks to everyone who read the last chapter. I was honestly not expecting to get that much of a response. This chapter was slower paced, and thusly much harder to write, but here it is! **

Rose adjusted the setting on the sonic screwdriver and aimed it at the slab, currently holding her in a half-nelson. She breathed out in relief, ducking under as it collapsed. It twitched once before lying on the hospital floor, unmoving.

She smirked at it. "There we are, last trace of that woman- er, Plasmavore." Pocketing the sonic, she whispered, remembering the wards of sleeping humans above her. "Now," She said, toeing the lump of leather. "S'time to get you out of sight before some stupid ape stumbles over you and makes a mess of things, yeah?"

After burying the slab in a nearby dumpster, Rose made her way out onto the street.

While there _were_ people out and about (it was _London_ after all), there was something about 3:47 am that gave most the desire to stay in bed. She departed down the nearly deserted sidewalk and up to the TARDIS. She didn't even bother with the key but merely opened the door with a snap of her fingers, regardless of who saw. Rose was deep in thought.

This had been the third trip to London this week. Was the old girl trying to tell her something? Now sitting in the console seat, Rose thought briefly about the last time she was here. Images of monstrous alien spiders and wedding dresses flashed through her head. She grimaced. _What a nightmare._

It couldn't have been more than a few months after the incident, earth time, judging by the look on John Smith's face when she spoke of aliens. It was as though he wasn't sure if she was being serious or not. Her mouth twitched as she thought of the doctor.

_Poor bloke, I really do owe him some chips after all I put him through. Really quite oblivious, but clearly ____very passionate and clever- for a human anyway..._

The TARDIS gave an unnatural churn, stirring Rose from her musing. "What is it girl, a little indigestion?" She stood up and reached over to turn the monitor towards her but stopped when a flashing mauve light caught her attention.

"Oh shit."

* * *

When John returned, no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't open the front door beyond a crack. Thanks to his skinny frame, this was enough for him to slip in. He scowled at the source of his frustration.

"Shouldn't have been surprised," he grumbled as he picked up the fallen coat stand. "Jack, you and your mates better not have gotten into my jammy dodgers!" The place was a disaster, and he didn't want to know what the splotch of liquid was on the rug.

Unsteady thuds made their way towards the entrance of the flat. "Ah, John, you missed the party," came the clumsy reply from around the corner. "Me and Lola- you remember the waitress from last night, right? Well we decide to go out for a drink and before I know it, we've invited a bunch of guys from the bar back to my place after it closes. Not _particularly _sure how we got here, but once we got here, _man_-"

Jack shot him what John supposed for normal people was a disarming grin. The doctor breathed out a heavy sigh. Over the past three months that they had been flatmates, John discovered that Captain Jack Harkness was extremely talented at taking advantage of him and anyone else that crossed his path. Not so much at handling his alcohol.

"You're obviously intoxicated. Why don't you go lie down while I take care of most of the mess."

"Right, no arguing with doctor's orders, ain't that right, Doc?"

"Get to bed."

"Aren't you going to come tuck me in?"

"Harkness." John glared at him.

"Alright, alright," he relented as he walked away. "But if you ever want-," his voice was *thankfully* cut off when he shuffled into his room and the door closed behind him. John closed his eyes, and breathed deep, sending a prayer for patience to a god he didn't even know if he believed in.

He set the forgotten leather arm down on the table and made for the broom.

* * *

Around five and half hours later, John woke up to a complaining stomach. He hadn't gotten to eat anything before falling into bed. In the kitchen, Jack sat examining the leather arm, seemingly not nursing the slightest sign of a hangover.

"What is this, some kind of prosthetic?" He asked.

"What? Oh yeah, that. Nah, just some odd piece of junk I found in the hospital basement," John answered, snagging a banana from the counter.

Before Jack could wiggle his eyebrows suggestively and question exactly _what _he was doing in the basement in the wee hours of the night, doorbell rang. John hastily hurried to answer it, so relieved by the save that he didn't vaguely wonder what sort of person would be there at, what was it? 4:30? "Hel-"

John stopped short when he looked down and noticed the woman in front of him. She was holding some sort of device in her hands. It sort of looked like the controller for a remote controlled car, except it made the same beeping sound as his alarm clock.

It wasn't the device that astonished him, though. It was the very familiar girl who was holding it.

"Hiiiii!" She exclaimed, smiling a bit too sweetly, looking down at the not-controller. "Just making some inquiry," she spoke loudly over the sound of the device. "Askin if anyone's seen anything strange..." Her eyes finally flickered up to John's. "Oh, it's you!"

'Rose' stood with her mouth gaping for a second, but then recovered, forming her mouth into a warm smile.

"Miss me?"

**Thanks again everyone for reading! I had a bit of trouble writing Jack, but I'm pretty sure I found a way to make it work. Let me know what you think. :)**

**To Be Continued.  
**


	3. Timey Wimey

**Hey guys, sorry this one took so long! I had a bit of writer's block. Changed my mind about three different times about where I was going with this. Should be pretty straightforward from here, but then I've never really done this before so I wouldn't know. **

**On a nicer note, I want to thank everyone who read the last two chapters. Special thanks to reviewers: ****TheAngelofIego****, ****Thetimeladyneverfound****, ****SquintSquad183********_*returns cyberhug*_****, ****totallyau****, ****erchills****, and one anonymous guest. **

**So anyway, here's the next chapter- enjoy! :)**

John opened his mouth to answer her, but then was interrupted (which was good, because he didn't know what he was going to say) by a crash from the kitchen. He turned to see that Jack had fallen out of his chair.

The captain frantically stood up. "Hold on, I _know _that voice."

Rose frowned in confusion and looked over John's shoulder. Her eyes widened. "It's you then!" She pushed past John, shoving the beeping device into his hands and taking a metal pen-looking gadget out of her pocket. Jack sputtered as she waved the gadget over him. All the while it was buzzing and glowing blue at the tip.

She looked at it after she was done, and then looked back at Jack with her mouth hanging slightly open. Jack still looked flustered. (This was all highly amusing to John, who was used to his flatmate taking everything in stride). "Rose?" He managed hoarsely.

"Who _are _you?" Rose murmured, stepping away from him. "More importantly, _what _are you? 'Cause I really shouldn't be getting these readings off of a normal human. Besides," she added, her voice disgusted."I get repulsed just looking at you."

At this, Jack seemed to have finally regained his voice, and, raising an eyebrow. "Oh, so you're _prejudiced _now?"

"Who wouldn't be?! I mean look at you pal. You're a-"

"A what?"

"You're a fact. A fixed point in time that _shouldn't be there_. Oh- and," she wagged her finger wildly in his face. "And you wasted a perfectly good forty-three minutes of my life!"

"I'm flattered" Jack shot back. "What did you _expect _to find?"

"I dunno, a fixed point appears out of nowhere and out of everything I find some lousy time agent." Rose suddenly latched onto his wrist and pulled up the sleeve of his shirt, revealing- "Knew it, a vortex manipulator."

Jack pulled back his hand and smiled smugly, like he was seeing her for the first time. "You think you're so clever." Neither of them realized that they'd gradually drifted closer together in an almost childish staring contest, and their noses were nearly touching now. Both of them drew back shocked when John spoke, as they had most likely forgotten he was there.

"Hello there, just wanted to let you know. Your beeping thing-"

"Temporal anomaly locator," Jack said. "Can't tell you how much trouble I've had with those."

Rose scowled at him. "You would." She turned to John. "'S my timey wimey detector. It goes 'beep' when I find stuff... or certain people." Rose looked pointedly at Jack. "Thank Rassilion I managed to find one in the TARDIS. Last one I had to _make_, and it had the tendency to explode hens and angry ladies' shower pipes." She shuddered at the memory.  
"Just, I thought you'd like to know..." He paused for dramatic effect. "It's stopped."

"What?!" Rose snatched the timey wimey detector and pressed it to her ear. She banged on it a bit (fairly hard) with the heel of her hand. "Impossible." Flipping it over and tearing off the flap reveal that a red light had turned on. "Something's interfering with my signal." The girl rushed through the door and John ran after her, not wanting to lose her again without finding out what was going on. Jack was right beside him.

When they reached the roof, the two found that Rose was holding up the detector to the sky as though she were trying to get cell service. They stopped in the doorway, and John addressed his friend. "Is this one of your broken hearts then, captain?" he smirked.

For some reason, this caused Jack to bark out in laughter. "That's good, coming from you." He kept grinning like he knew something the doctor didn't. It was unnerving, to say the least.

"How'd you mean?"

Rose chose that moment to voice her anger at the starless night. "Fine, _be that way_! I've found what I was looking for anyway." She grabbed Jack by the arm, like a mother might do to a toddler. "Doc-_tah_. Yeah, you. You come too. I need someone to be all gawking and amazement, and I got a feelin' this one's out to be difficult." The girl didn't even look back to make sure he was following.

She didn't have to.

The TARDIS was a couple of blocks away, on the corner of a shadowy, overlooked alleyway. Rose hadn't been paying very much attention to _where _she parked it, as long as it was close to the signal. She raised her eyebrows at the source of said signal. The American man whose origin she was certain was far in the future had stopped in his tracks as it came into sight.

She had a bad taste in the back of her throat just from looking at him, so maybe she _was _just a _bit _snappy in her request for an explanation.

"I'm not sure it would be the best idea for me to come aboard your ship." His expression became uneasy. "It didn't end up so well for the either of us last time."

"Don't be stupid- wait, what do you mean last time?" The old girl had had many passengers, but Rose was pretty sure she'd have remembered this one.

"Yeah," the doctor piped in from behind. "You never mentioned anything about any of _this_. Whatever _this _is." Rose couldn't help but smile at his sarcastic tone, liking him already. The man had no idea what was going on, but he was determined to have a say in it.

"Rose," Jack said softly, and with such familiarity and almost brotherly affection that it sent a shiver up her spine. He raised his free arm up so that his hand could rest on her shoulder. "You know me. I've traveled with you. I've saved alien worlds with you. I've flirted with you and been rejected by you. We're best friends... just not yet. I'm from your future, Rosie."

"Oh... Oh yeah?" She responded, trying not to sound affected, though she felt like she'd had the wind kicked out of her. _That actually makesa lot of sense_, said the part of her brain that was still working. _What with him being so loaded with artron energy. That'll be an adventure to look forward to. _"S'pose that shouldn't surprise me. You know, timey wimey life and everything."

"So, you see I can't go on the TARDIS, because we could chance messing up the timelines. However," he grinned. "You and John never told me how you met, you never would. I suppose I thought it was something that would make the two of you blush, but now I guess I know the truth."  
"What are you talking about, Jack?" asked the doctor.

"I'm saying that right now, there's two idiots out there that will be you in need of saving. I've got somewhere to be, Doc. Your orders, really. Goodbye, you two. I'll see you soon." With that, he hit a couple of buttons on his vortex manipulator and vanished.

The doctor paled, looking from Rose to the spot where Jack used to be. He raked his fingers through his hair (which, she noted, was really great hair) and finally fixed a steely glare on her. "Now, you will tell me what just happened."

"Easy there, big fella. Yes, I s'pose I do owe you some answers. Besides, Captain Jack knew you from the future, so I guess we gotta do this at some point." She snapped her fingers and the door to the TARDIS opened. "Please, do come in for some tea."

**Don't worry, Jack ****_will _****be back! As for now, I could literally pick anywhere in space and time and go with it. So, any suggestions or favorite episodes that you guys would like me to write with John and Rose? Let me know what you think. **


	4. The TARDIS

**Hi everyone. Thanks for being so patient with this one. Sorry for the technical difficulties- the edits I made weren't showing up in the actual story, so I had to delete it and then upload it again. Anyways, happy reading! :)**

John took long slow strides through the door. He had followed Rose with some hesitancy, but he knew logically that there was little she could be hiding in that odd police telephone box she was leading him into. However, he was still not sure that Rose was entirely sane.

Darting out as soon as he got a glimpse of the inside (which was _much_ roomier than the outside), he examined the box with wide eyes. This revealed that the exterior was no larger than it had appeared at first sight. He walked into the box again, and neither was the interior smaller.

The jaw of one John Smith dropped. _Was this some kind of trick?_ He thought, completely forgetting about the woman who was now grinning at his reaction.

"Wait just a mo'. I'll be right back. His mind barely registered that she'd spoken. The box was cavernous, with large coral-like struts. In the hub of the room, there was a huge futuristic test-tube looking canister glowing blue. It was surrounded by a dashboard of controls that would have been better served in the cockpit of an airplane.

There was something else, though, that he'd never experienced before. An almost electricity in the air, that sent a rush of adrenaline to his head. It made him want to run and run and run.

Something distinctly warm and mug-shaped was pushed into the hand that was still at his side (the other had taken up residence at the bottom of his hairline, and was running through its roots. Rose was standing in front of him looking far too smug for her own good. Still taken with the magnificence of the box, he couldn't bring himself to care.

"So whaddaya think?"

"It's-" He didn't know where to begin. It was _bigger_ on the _inside_.

"Yeah?" She smirked and crossed her arms knowingly. "It's what?"

A chill ran through him, and he snapped out of his stupor. "It's a bit nippy in here." Rose's eyebrows skyrocketed.

"What?"

"Said it's cold in here. Mind turning the heat up a little?" He relished in her indignant scowl. Without warning, the box rumbled, as though it were laughing with him.

"Oh be quiet, you." She kicked the middle, where the controls were. "S'not funny." This only caused it to rumble harder.

"Did you just _talk_ to it?" John wrinkled his nose in confusion, and his eyebrows furrowed.

"Well _yeah_," she rolled her eyes, as though she were speaking to a toddler. "The TARDIS is a fully sentient being."

"What was that now?" He asked, thinking he didn't catch what she said.

"The taaaaardissss!" She drew out the word, sounding it out in the same talking-to-a-toddler voice. "That's time and relative dimension in space. That's right, space and time travel. And since you didn't ask, yes, she is bigger on the inside, thank you very much! Dimensionally transcendent, my girl is."

_This has gone far enough_, John thought, as he stepped closer, unconsciously imitating his (former? he didn't even know anymore) flatmate. "Wait... wait a minute. I can accept the aliens and space travel, 'cause of Christmas and those leather... _slab_ things. But you said time travel. That's just ridiculous, even more than that this _thing_ is dimensionally... dimensionally..

"Dimensionally transcendent."

"Yes, and that it's a spaceship. In fact, I'm still not even sure this isn't some elaborate prank, pulled by, I dunno, some students." Rose's eyes blazed, and she pulled herself up to her full height (still not that impressive, though still holding gravity), taking in a deep breath, and most like about to make a retort.

The "TARDIS" lurched.

The blazing transformed into a glint of amusement, and then he was glaring at the empty space she had been, as she ducked back on the other side of the canister. "You're right. There's now way I can convince you that this is real, at least by arguing. But I can show you." She pulled down on a lever, before running around the side to flip a few switches. "Hold on to your imaginary hat, _Doctor_, we're moving into the time vortex.

She couldn't have sounded the warning sooner, for just then, he nearly fell over from an earthquake sized tremor, and reached for one of the struts, gripping it so hard that his knuckles turned white. He clenched his teeth with the effort it took to hold on. In the back of his mind, he wondered what the curious wheezing sound was that the "Tardis" seemed to be making.

Rose seemed annoyingly unaffected by the shifting of the "Tardis", scampering all over the place, moving in tandem to the ship's movements. In a matter of seconds though, everything came to a halt, and John stumbled to his knees.

The woman was at his side immediately, helping him up. Rose had lost all of her former angry intensity, and there was now a contagious excitement about her that John couldn't help but return, however mad she appeared to be.

"So," she said, trying to act casual, though he could tell that she was nearly bursting with eagerness. "_Anywhere_ in space and time, where do you wanna go?"

"U-um..." His mind whirred as he struggled to answer the question.

"Fine, then," Rose said impatiently. "We'll flip a coin." She reached into her pocket further than what John would have thought physically possible. "Heads, I bring you to the future. Tails, we go to the past." The coin was flicked into the air, and flipped on end. John caught it, and slapped it onto his palm. "Tails."

"Shame," Rose pouted. "The future's way more fun. But I guess past it is then!" She pressed a considerably large button, and the world became a blur again.

**Wow, didn't realize how moody post-time war Rose would be XD. Portraying John was really the hard part here though, because I still wanted his reaction to be somewhat like the doctor, in essence, but also realistically human. Thank you all for reading and special thanks to reviewers erchills and misstylersmith for leaving recommendations for further chapters. Don't be shy with suggestions or advice- let me know what you think! **

**Next is Tooth and Claw, guys! :)**


	5. Tooth and Claw: The Torchwood Estate

**Hey everyone. As always, thanks to those of you that read and reviewed the last chapter. And without further ado, I present to you- Tooth and Claw: The Torchwood Estate**

In an impressive feat of flexibility, Rose adjusted the gyroscopic stabilizers, while reaching over to pull the time rotor handbrake with her other arm. The Tardis _vworshed_ to a halt, making her stumble back into the wall. She pushed herself off with a laugh.

The doctor made a sort of groaning sound over next to one of the struts, holding his stomach. He must have caught her amused glance, because he scowled and got up off his knees. "That's it. I'm out of here."

"I wouldn't do that if I were you." Rose called, but it was too late, as he'd stepped outside already. She took a deep breath and closed her eyes, before counting down from ten. She reached two when the doors flung open.

"Um, Rose?" His voice had gone all high pitched.

"Yeah?" She raised her eyebrows.

"We've moved," he said weakly.

"Have we," Rose responded, in mock surprise. She smiled, tongue between her teeth. "I didn't realize."

"But that's..." She could see the thoughts racing through his head, foremost of all one word: _impossible_. "Brilliant!"

This time, Rose was actually surprised. "Oh?"

"How exactly does it work? Did we fly here then?"

"Nah, she's much more efficient than that. Just disappears there, reappears here. Explaining it any further would probably burst your little ape brain." She knocked on his forehead for emphasis and smirked.

"Oi!" he cried indignantly. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Nothing."

With an indignant _hmph _and dampened enthusiasm, he continued. "So it's sort of like teleportation then?" The doctor was still trying to understand the mysteries of the Tardis. _Men_, she rolled her eyes.

"Yeah, if you want to go off and _label_. It's a bit like that. Speaking of which, where are we?" She made her way to the door, hearing the doctor's blathering as she opened it.

"It's some kind of old Victorian house. A bit old fashioned, if you ask me. Absolutely no account for taste. "He made a face. "Seems to me to be in the middle of nowhere. No buildings, no trees, a courtyard, and just grass all the way off into the distance, and clouds, lots of clouds. Hey, I thought you said you could drive this thing..." Rose only caught pieces of this monologue (_Did the man have an off switch?_) while she tried to remember where she'd seen this place.

It was more like a castle than a house, with towers and the like, and one with that very conspicuous telescope. Her eyes widened. Memories flashed before her- images of stars and a pleasant old man, the smell of musty old books and a pig roast, intelligent conversations about astronomy, folklore, and magic.

"That's it!" she cried out, interrupting the doctor in mid ramble. "The Torchwood Estate, I should have known!" With that, she clasped the doctor's hand with her own, and yanked him outside with her.

* * *

John was pulled through the Tardis door with what he considered incredible rudeness on Rose's part. He had no time to protest, as they walked straight into a bald man in a tuxedo who had a wrinkled scowling face. Soon they were surrounded by the dangerous ends of several rifles. Out of instinct, John's hands flew up. Next to him, Rose, also reaching for the sky, spoke up.

"Oh, so they've installed a welcoming committee since last time. Very posh, really makes us feel at home." _What was the girl doing, using a Scottish accent?_ A more urgent thought came into his head. _Are we in Scotland?_, and even more importantly, _Is she _trying_ to kill us?_

"What is your business here?" The man's voice was accented as well, but other than that, held a very different tonal quality. He addressed Rose in distaste. John suddenly felt a burst of protectiveness for the girl standing next to him, and edge forward slightly.

"Just visiting." Rose, still with a firm grip on his hand, stood on her tiptoes, peering above the three guards. "I'm on familiar terms with the master of the estate. I was hoping to see him."

"Sir Robert has no time for beggars, especially one attired so..." John stiffened as the man looked her over in derision. "...dubiously." _Now that just isn't fair._

"Really?" He found himself saying in a fit of boldness. "Because if I had to peg somebody here for odd dressing habits, I'd choose the blokes who look like we're still living in the nineteenth century." This had as little an effect as if he hadn't said anything at all.

The corner of Rose's mouth twitched. "Look before you speak, _Stripes_."

John looked down to see the flannel material of his jim-jams that he'd' been wearing when Rose first knocked on the door.

Oh.

His ears grew red in embarrassment, but fortunately attention was directed away from him. The guards turned around when a man's voice called in a tremor. "Hello, w-what's this then, Father Angelo?"

Rose beamed, and began to step forward towards him before the guards pushed her back. "Sir Robert! It is 'sir' now isn't it? Last time I saw you, you were still a wee lad-"

Father Angelo moved in front of Rose, blocking her out. "This matter does not concern you, Robert. You best listen to my advice and leave them to me."

"But wait, that isn't Miss Tyler?" Sir Robert ignored the man in shock. "But she would be an old woman by now!" _As if this scenario isn't strange enough..._

"I moisturize."

His face was now steeped in confusion, and yet something in what she said made him smile. "You always were strange. Really it is you. It's been so long, perhaps you would like to..."

Father Angelo now spoke through gritted teeth. "Sir Robert, I really would not suggest inviting her to anything, considering our already well made plans... involving one particular guest?"

"Oh yes, that's right." Sir Robert's eyes darkened, as he thought of said well-made plans. "No, the kitchens are hardly stocked, and the wife is away. Your stay here would really be quite miserable." His hands clasped in front of him nervously, and John couldn't help but become anxious himself when he saw the curiosity in Rose's expression.

"Nah. I reckon that we won't be too much trouble, what do you say, doctor?" All eyes rested upon him. Sir Robert, who seemed as though he hadn't noticed John before, raised his brow questioningly.

"Who is this then, miss? Or should I be calling you by another name?" He shot a significant look at John, who took a second to realize what he meant.

"What? Oh, no no no..." He waved his hands in front of him in denial, at the same time that Rose spoke.

"Ah, no. This is my cousin, Dr. John Smith." She leaned forward and whispered conspiratorially. "Bit of a loon, poor fellow. I had to take him in- no one _else_ would." John gave an offended squeak. _Very rude._

"Quite," said Sir Robert, looking unsure. "I don't suppose there's a problem getting them rooms for the night, as long as they stay out of the way. I mean it's not as though-" A guard came up through the crowd. "She's arrived, sir."

His still-clasped hands came up to his mouth, and he groaned. "Terrible timing all of this is. Really. Oh well, I don't have time to settle you in now, so I suppose you're going to have to come and meet her."

"I'm sorry," Rose said. "But who is this mystery guest?"

"Miss Tyler, Mister Smith." Sir Robert addressed them. "Prepare yourselves to meet her majesty, Queen Victoria."

**Yes, the Tardis ****_vworshes _****now. ****_Vworshing_**** is cool(Besides the fact that there was really no other way to spell out the sound the Tardis makes). But seriously, watching this episode made me re-realize the sheer awesomeness of series 2. You can't get much better than the Doctor and Rose Tyler, in the Tardis, fighting monsters and visiting alien worlds (and universes). **

**If you have any suggestions, thoughts, or critiques, please don't hesitate to review. Let me know what you think :)**


	6. Tooth and Claw: Queen Victoria

**Yikes, guys. Sorry for not updating for so long. Been busy with final projects for school (XP). Anyway, as usual, thanks to those of you that read and reviewed last chapter. It is really appreciated. And after a long wait, here's chapter six:**

"Let them approach." After much protest by Sir Robert and members of the royal guard, the queen still insisted she meet the last notice guests. John straightened the collar on his unusual striped attire, and stepped forward. When Queen Victoria wants you to approach, you do so. Rose was right beside him, eyes wide and grinning. Even for her (and he suspects that this wasn't too far off her everyday routine) this was an unexpected honor.

She looked just like she always appeared in the portraits. John swallowed; _this was too much._

"Lady Rose, did you say?" she asked.

"Yes ma'am, Rose Tyler, and this is my cousin, _Dr. John Smith_." She gave him a furtive nudge in the side.

"Ah, yes. Ahem, your majesty. That is, pleasure to meet me, I mean you." His tongue was all tied up in his mouth while he attempted to greet the woman who should be long dead. It didn't help at all the amused look Rose was flashing him.

Queen Victoria raised her eyebrows. "Quite. _What _exactly are you a doctor of then?"

Before he could get himself caught up in answering, Rose did it for him. "Oh, Johnny's got a degree in medicine. University of Embra, wasn't it? Wait, I think I forgot to give you back your credentials." Puzzled, he watched her dig out a blank piece of paper the size of a business card, and held it up for Queen Victoria to... read? _How does one read blank credentials?_

The queen seemed to have managed it well enough. "Well, in that case, perhaps you should join us, just in case the stories are true."

"What stories were those then, ma'am?" asked Rose.

"Why," answered the queen, "You must have heard of them if you've come this way before." She continued, eyes as big as dinner plates. "There are stories of wolves around these parts."

* * *

Rose was very much enjoying herself. Nostalgia levels were rising as they toured the house, the doctor was proving to be quite the companion, asking all the right questions finally ("_What was with that blank piece of paper, then?"_, "'_s slightly psychic."_ , "_Oh, okay... wait, what?"_), and she seemed to be getting along with nicely royalty for once despite her previous streak of bad luck. She was faintly humming a tune as they walked into the observatory.

"This, I take, is the most famous Endeavor?" inquired the queen, referring to the rather magnificent looking telescope in the middle of the room..

"All my father's work. Built by hand in his final years. Became something of an obsession - he spent his money on this rather than caring for the house or himself." Rose stopped humming, and almost choked. _His _final _years. He's dead. _

"Lady Rose, are you quite alright?" Queen Victoria glanced her way in mild concern.

"Rose?" The doctor looked at her, just a bit more nervous.

"No, I'm alright. I was just sort of...remembering." She turned to Sir Robert. "May I?" she gestured to the telescope.

"Help yourself."

Rose peered into the lense and pouted in concentration. The view was all blurry. She stepped back a little and examined the entire thing. _Way too many prisms._ "What'd he model it on?" She eyed Sir Robert.

"I know nothing about it. To be honest, most of us thought him a little... shall we say, eccentric?"

"Best sort of men, I'd say," murmured Rose. "Hey doctor, come take a look at this! See what you can make of it."

He squinted into the glass while Sir Robert started to look a tad uncomfortable at the thought of a clearly mad man at the foot of his late father's prized possession. "It's a bit rubbish," he said, wrinkling his nose.

Rose rapped him on the arm with the back of her hand. "_Rude_." Even if she did agree.

The queen was not amused, and went on to compliment the former master on his imagination, learning, and interest in folklore. The doctor seemed to become more and more enraptured in the tale of the man as she spoke. "Oh, my late husband enjoyed his company. He was quite enraptured with the story of your local wolf."

"What is it with this wolf then?" asked Rose.

"It's just a story," replied Sir Robert, uneasy.

"Yeah?" she urged.

"Well they say that-"

He was interrupted by Father Angelo, who Rose hadn't realized was still there. "Excuse me, sir. Perhaps her Majesty's party could repair to their rooms to get ready for supper. It's almost dark." She bristled when she looked at him, but couldn't place anything specific about him with the feeling, so she decided to ignore it.

As Queen Victoria nodded in assent and walked off, she called back. "And could we find some proper clothing for Doctor Smith? This is quickly becoming ridiculous."

* * *

John tried for the sixth time to tie the cravat around his neck to no avail. It was no use. He groaned in frustration. Maybe he would feel better if Rose was suffering right along with him, but for some reason, since the guard, no one had noticed _her_ lack of Victorian dress code. It really wasn't fair. He froze as his grumbling was interrupted by a whimpering sound from the room across the hall.

With only the slightest moment of hesitation, he stepped across through the open door and realized that the noise was coming from a closet. Opening it up, he found a young maid curling up into a ball inside and breathing heavily, pressing herself against the opposite wall.

He was a bit startled, but then softened as she's obviously terrified... of something. John crouched down, and held out his hand. She looked at it for a second before taking it. He pulled her out, and she stands up, takes a step away from him, and brushed her skirts with her hands. John smiled. Now, something he knew how to handle. He'd dealt with many panicked patients before now, and it at least didn't involve big blue boxes and ancient queens. "Well?" he asked.

"Well, what?" she asked. He sat himself down on the bed.

"Aren't you going to tell me what's got you so scared?" When she hesitated, he decided to try for something a little easier. "What's your name, then?"

"Flora, sir," she answered immediately. She scrutinized him for a second, before continuing. "And I'm scared of them. Them that took the steward. They came through the house and took my lady too."

"Who are they, Flora?" he asked urgently. He needed to find Rose.

"They're the servants," she spoke quick and out of breath, her eyes widening at something behind him. "The servants of the wolf."

He shot his head around and only caught a glimpse of Father Angelo before he felt a knock on his head and everything faded into darkness.

**To Be Continued.  
**


	7. Tooth and Claw: Lupis Deus est

**The absolutely true account of my absence-**

**Me: So Nine, how long have I been gone?**

**Nine: About four days.**

**~later~**

**Nine: Did I say four days? It's er... four weeks. You've been gone a whole month.**

**Me:...**

**Nine: Sorry**

**Anyway, if any of you are still reading this, here's chapter 7.**

* * *

Rose was having far too much of a good time to care about that little bit of worry in the pit of her stomach that came up when the doctor was delayed. Dinner and small talk with Queen Victoria, imagine that! _Quite_ amusing. Her chair was pulled up to the table as far as it could, and she leaned forward. She addressed the master of the house. "Now then, sir. You promised us a tale of nightmares, didn't you? This wolf?"

"Indeed. Since my husband's death, I find myself with more of a taste for supernatural fiction." The aforementioned queen added. Rose took a second to glance at her.

There was pain in her voice when she mentioned her husband that Rose knew. "You must miss him, yeah?"

The queen turned to look straight into her eyes. "Very much. Oh, completely. And that's the charm of a ghost story, isn't it? Not the scares and chills, that's just for children, but the... hope of some contact with the great all want some message from that place..."

"Yeah," Rose breathed, but nobody heard her. It had been less than a year in her linear time stream since the Time War. If she had some hope of talking to those that she lost, even if, perhaps, that hope came in the form of a dubious myth, she had little doubt she would take it.

"...it's the Creator's greatest mystery that we are allowed no such consolation. The dead stay silent. And we must wait." She seemed to shrug herself out of the faze. Of course she would, she was British. "Come! Begin your tale, Sir Robert. There's a chill in the air. The wind is howling through the eaves. Tell us of monsters!"

And so, he did. He told the story of the 300 year legend that made its way onto wood carvings and drawings, about the man who could turn into a wolf. A werewolf. The pit of worry in Rose's stomach grew greater, as her subconscious kept track of how long the doctor had been kept up. Far too long. Her eyes rested on Father Angelo, standing next to the window. And his reflection was chanting three words over and over again. _Lupis deus est, Lupis deus est, Lupis deus... _

_The wolf is god..._

Robert's father was turned on by the monastery, but his work was far from ungodly. That was the problem. In her head, it all came together. Sir Robert was leading towards Rose's thoughts. "What if they turned from God, and worshipped the wolf?" There was fear there- he knew something...

"Or better yet," Rose brought him up short as she heard the chanting getting louder. "What if they were with us right now?" Her head snapped back to Father Angelo. "Where's Doctor Smith?"

* * *

John rubbed the back of his head, which had been previously lying on something hard and cold, and blearily opened his eyes. _Ugh, what a dream_. He sat up and blocked off all the surrounding noise. _Can hardly remember it... _Groaning, he opened up his eyes all the way to see that he was chained to a metal rod with several other people in Victorian dress. "Ah, _this_," He said out loud, and made a face.

Something clanged over to his right. There was a cage, and sitting inside it, eyes closed, was a man. The woman next to him spoke. "Don't make a sound. They said if we scream or shout, then he will slaughter us."

"Who's he then? What's he gonna do to us from over there in that cage? He's more a prisoner than us!"

"There's more than that. That creature is not mortal."

At this, the man opened his eyes, revealing them to be completely black. John frowned speculatively. "Ah, that's not _nice_. Poor bloke's probably just got a genetic disorder or somewhat..." Despite the woman's protests, he walked up as far as he could go and kneeled down before it. "At this point in history you should all be beyond this," He muttered, before addressing the hooded figure. "What's your name?"

"Ohhh, stupidity... just like this body," it responded.

John narrowed his eyebrows. "What're you on about."

"This body... ten miles away... a weakling, heartsick boy. Stolen away at night by the brethren from my cultivation. I carved out his soul and sat in his heart."

His breath quickened. "So what you're saying is that this body that you're in right now... it's not yours?" He was just indulging this obviously severe mental case. Yeah, that's what he was doing- it's not like he believed the rubbish. _Nah... _"Where do you come from then?"

"So far from home, but then why would I leave this place? A world of industry, of workforce and warfare. I could turn it to such purpose... I will migrate to the Holy Monarch and with one bite, I would pass into her blood. And then it begins. The Empire of the Wolf! So many questions..."

The creature- yes John was completely certain now- lunged forwards, making him and the rest of the prisoners jump. "Look, inside your eyes! You've seen it too!"

"Seen what?"

"The wolf! You have seen the greatest and most powerful wolf, one that has hunted across all of space and time!"

"I don't know what you mean," John replied.

"One day you will be like a storm, but tonight, it is clear enough to see the moon." The door swung open and light from the night outside filtered in. The creature pressed his face against the bars and smiled blissfully. "Moonlight..."

John's eyes widened. He turned to the uncomfortable group of prisoners who were standing there, panicking. Making a snap decision, "Listen to me now, all of you! Stop looking at it! Flora, don't look - listen to me. Grab hold of the chain and pull!" he ordered.

The creature began to growl.

* * *

**Sorry for the shortness of this one- it just sort of ended without my permission. Thanks to everyone that's reading this and reviewing. Let me know what you think!**

**To Be Continued.**


	8. Tooth and Claw: Running

**Hello my beautiful readers! Just wanted to address a few questions that have been coming up-**

**Casamora: In this fic, Bad Wolf is more like a universal title that Rose has, rather like the Oncoming Storm is for the Doctor(and *spoilers* will be for John ;]). As for regeneration, I have given it thought, and I have a few ideas, but it's so early in the story and I just love 10xRose (and in this case JohnxRose) so much without having to give her an entirely new personality- so, IF it's gonna happen, it's not gonna happen for a little bit. And I strongly recommend Classic Doctor Who, especially the third and fourth doctors. **

**Zarelyn: Here you go X)**

**Alright everybody, here's a long chappy to make up for the last one.**

* * *

Rose was running.

This was hardly an unusual occurrence, but in this case, she was running towards an unknown adversary, rather than away from it. Though this way seemed more honest, since wasn't the danger the reason she travelled?

"Where do you reckon they're keeping them," she asked him.

"The cellar," he panted.

"Right," she nodded at him "Lead the way."

They made their way through the halls and down stairs, through the servant's quarters, until they made their way to the cellar door. Rose kicked down the door just as the sound of the chain holding all of the prisoners captive being yanked off resonated throughout the room. "About time you showed up!" shouted the doctor.

She raised her eyebrows at him, smirking. "Or 'hello', as they used to say." Turning her head forty-five degrees to the left, she gasped in delight. "Oh look at you, you _gorgeous_ beastie," she crooned. The doctor looked at her as though she lost her mind as she grinned at the _fantastic_-looking, albeit enormous, wolf.

The beast became a little less beautiful as it bent back the bars of its cage, and began to force its way out. Behind her, Sir Robert yelled to his wife. Rose turned to the group of prisoners. "Alright then, everybody out!" She held open the door for them. The doctor was the last one in line, and she winked at him before walking through herself. ("Cheeky woman," she thought she heard him mutter, but she couldn't be sure.) After locking the door to the cellar with her sonic screwdriver and hurrying to meet the others down the corridor, she took the doctor's handcuffed hands and started to work on getting him loose.

This was a harder task than it should be, since he pulled them away to get her attention. His eyes were open wide, and his teeth were bared in an expression of fierceness and intensity. "What _was _that?"

"Let me get at your handcuffs, doctor. Your wrists must be worn raw- we should sue." She grinned, and got him out after a few seconds of fiddling. "It's alien, that's for sure. Nothin' on Earth like that. Should know that, me, I end up here more often than not. Did it say what it wanted?"

The doctor took a step back and pressed his lips together. "Something about migrating to the holy monarch, which I reckon must mean Queen Vicky. Not positive, though. Was a bit busy at the time." He looked a bit pointedly at her.

"Doesn't matter, don't usually figure it out this early, anyway."

A thumping sound from the way they just came interrupted her. She held up a finger to the doctor as a signal to wait before running down to investigate. "Oh no you don't. Not again." He followed her.

The wolf had managed to fight its way through the cellar, and was now just standing there, staring her right in the eye. _Well, knew that wasn't going to last long anyways. _She grimaced at it. To her surprise, it began to whimper a little. So she walked closer, holding her hand out in front of her, and it backed away. "Why're you scared of me?" she murmured. All of a sudden, its eyes picked up on something behind her and growled, treading forward.

Rose turned around to see the doctor standing there, face pale and brow furrowed. "What are you doing here?" she snapped, and grabbed his hand. "Run!"

"Thought I told you to wait," she said as she ran.

"Yeah, cause that worked out so well last time, me being separated from you," he quipped. She let out a little groan of frustration.

There was a line of armed men waiting for them when they returned, which they reached just as they a line of shots were fired at the wolf. The doctor winced. "You alright?" Rose asked softly, squeezing his hand. She'd forgotten he hadn't done this before.

"I don't much like guns," he said through gritted teeth. The taste of smoke sat in their mouths and stung their eyes.

The firing squad ceased, and the wolf was nowhere in sight. She stood up to take charge. "All right, men, we should retreat upstairs, this way!" However, they didn't look too likely to follow her instructions.

"I'll not retreat. The battle's done. There's no creature on God's Earth that could survive such an assault." said the steward. _Exactly._

"Please," she begged. "Come upstairs."

"With all due respect, mum, I will sleep well tonight with that thing's hide upon my wall." He strode down the corridor to where the standoff between Rose and the wolf had recently occurred. She watched him at a distance, uneasy. _How come no one ever listens to me? Have I just got one of those faces this time 'round, or is it my gender? Sexist seventeenth century humans, _she thought, snorting out loud.

The steward walked back a little too cocky. "Must've crawled away to die-" were his last words before he was lifted through the ceiling and devoured. The doctor sprung into action.

"No time, we need to get out of here." He pushed Rose out of the room.

She looked at him while they ran and grinned. "I think you're finally starting to get the hang of this."

Rose was running again- perhaps a little less honestly.

* * *

John hurried into a room, his hand still clasped in Rose's. This appeared to be becoming a pattern for the two of them. Not that he minded. That is, she knew what she was doing, and after the incident with the cravat and all the knocking out and being chained up in a cellar, he didn't want to stray too far anyway. Plus, he had to admit to himself that her fingers fit well in the spaces between his.

His thoughts dispersed as she pulled away from him to lock the door with that glowy tube-thing... what was it? Oh yes, sonic screwdriver.

Though that didn't seem to help them very much before, with the cellar door.

"Your Majesty, your Majesty!" Sir Robert cried, as Queen Victoria came bustling down the stairs.

"Sir Robert, what's happening?" John saw that Rose had dashed off again and frowned. The girl had a penchant for wandering off. "I heard such terrible noises." He smirked.

"Your Majesty - we've got to get out. But what of Father Angelo? Is he still here?"

"Captain Reynolds disposed of him." John's eyebrows rose. Of course, it was the monks that had set all of this up. To his relief, Rose appeared again.

"It looks like they don't want us to leave the house. The doors are all boarded up, and the monkey boys aren't too keen with us gettin' out through the window, unless they figure we like a good bullet hole."

The queen's eyes widened. "Do they know who I am?" she cried indignantly.

"Yes, see that's the problem your majesty," said John, reaching a hand behind his head and rubbing at the back of his neck. "They've arranged an appointment with you and that slightly solid mythical wolf you mentioned earlier."

"Now, stop this talk," she said, her tone stern and a bit frightened. "There can't be an actual wolf."

As if to purposefully contradict her, a howl ran through the house, and they all shivered. Then something was pounding the other side of the door. "What do we do?" He asked.

Rose pursed her lips in thought. "We... run!"

"_Again_?" He whined.

"Do _you _have any bright ideas, Stripes?" He flinched at his nickname that he knew he would never live down.

"Well, no..."

"Then we run. Come on your Majesty, just a bit of jogging, 's good for the health." Rose grabbed the queen's hand, and pulled her along up the staircase. There was a loud _crack _as the wolf broke down the door and they all ran even faster.

John could literally feel its wet breath on his back (he really needed to get used to this running bit; Rose was way ahead of him) when Captain Reynold came out of nowhere and fired at it, and then followed John behind the corridor. He was all out of breath- John that is, not the captain.

"I'll take this position and hold it. You keep moving, for God's sake!" He turned to the queen in remorse. "Your Majesty - I went to look for the property, it was taken. The chest was empty." John's ears pricked up. He'd heard them talking about the box earlier, but when he'd inquired all he'd gotten was a cold reply and shifty eyes. Now, his interest was piqued even more greatly. _What's inside that makes it so precious that the queen herself would travel with it. And what would the monkey boys want with it?_

"I have it. It's safe."

"Then remove yourself, Ma'am. Lady Rose, since you seem so confident, for reasons that have nothing to do with my own affairs, you will stand her Majesty's protector. And you, Sir Robert - you're a traitor to the crown." He cocked his gun, not at Sir Robert, but in the direction of the wolf.

Rose protested. "It's no use. Bullets can't stop it."

"They'll buy you time." John saw it in his eyes- the man had made a decision, and he wasn't going to let anything anyone say get in his way. He lived to protect the queen. John had to respect that, and saluted to the man before following Sir Robert and the queen down the hall. He looked to see Rose straggling. She bit at her lip in dismay, but he knew she wasn't stupid. There was no convincing the captain.

They ran into the library, and sagged in relief, knowing that they had a few moments of peace. That was, until John realized what, or rather who, was missing.

Rose was still outside in the hallway, stricken with horror. "There's nothing we can do," she gasped. "Nothing." The wolf was attacking the captain, and she couldn't take her eyes away from it.

"Rose!" he cried, and pulled her out of the corridor by her waist, slamming the door shut with his shoulder.

She turned around to look at him. "You saved my life," she said in wonder. At this point, he realized, a bit awkwardly, that he was still had his arms draped around her. John had almost lost his way home, their salvation from the wolf(because he doubted that they were getting out of this without her), and, he realized and gulped, the woman had almost died. At this point, he realized that Rose was a little too jeopardy friendly.

He also realized that there was more running in his future, because Rose ran, and for one reason or another, he couldn't let her go.

* * *

**To be Continued.**

**Well there goes my first attempt at writing fluff, among other things. Let me know what you think!**


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